It might seem reasonable for shorter coaching engagements to result in lower total coaching fees. But you need to remember that your clients hire you to help them to achieve breakthroughs and results. If you agree to coach a client to achieve certain goals in, say, three months that would normally take six months to achieve, it will require much more commitment and much more effort on their part and yours to achieve the goal in the shorter time period, and the client needs to compensate you accordingly.

Don’t Set Your Client up for Disappointment

If your prospective clients says “Let’s start with three months, and continue with three more months if necessary.” You need to lay out a plan to get the job done in three months. The reason is that either your client will not achieve their goal in three months and think that coaching doesn’t work, or they will achieve their goal, and run the risk of falling back into their old ways without your support.

Let Your Coaching Fees Reflect the Intensity of Your Program and Your Client’s Commitment

As the timeframe of your coaching program is shortened, both you and your client must be committed to work more intensely, and higher fees are fair for you and your client. For example, if your client asks to achieve, in three months, a goal that would be reasonable to achieve in 6 months, your client should be prepared to dedicate four to five times more hours and effort to achieving the goal, you should plan on spending three times the hours and effort, your coaching fees should be at least three times the regular monthly rate, and you should include a maintenance coaching relationship to assure that new behavior is fully established.

Making the Argument for Longer Rather than Shorter Coaching Engagements

Once you realize the greater risk of failure, the possible dissatisfaction of your client with you and with coaching, and the much higher coaching fees associated with shorter coaching engagements, it is clear that longer rather than shorter engagements probably best serve your client. For this reason, I suggest that you consider moving from six month to twelve month programs. Not only will your clients have a greater probability for success, but you will be able to help them achieve one major breakthrough after another during the longer engagement period.

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Dave Iuppa
JTS Advisors Strategy and Accountability Coach